Marivaux's play "The Game of Love and Chance" is a short work composed in the Italian style of commedia dell'arte , using classic characters and humor to explore conventional themes. Specifically, “The Game of Love and Chance” is designed to address the relationships between love, fortune, and factors such as reason and social class. Marivaux uses the characters' social statuses and behaviors to suggest that love and chance, viewed through the lens of social class, are both powerful causal forces that dominate reason. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay It becomes evident from the beginning of the play that love and fortune are both powerful causal forces. The effects of these combined forces are seen most clearly in the psychological states of the characters under their influence. For example, the emotional stability of the young upper-class woman, Silvia, is referred to both indirectly and as a form of self-commentary. Silvia has fallen in love against her will with Dorante, a nobleman disguised as a simple valet. The other characters are the first to notice the changes occurring in Silvia. The servant Lisette states that Silvia "becomes passionate" at the mere mention of Dorante, and says that she "does not understand [Silvia's] vicious mood" because she "has never seen [Silvia] in a such state” (339). Silvia's brother, Mario, states that Silvia seems "strange," "touchy," and "quite frantic," and her father, Orgon, agrees that Silvia is "so distraught that he doesn't recognize her" (345). -346). Silvia ends up criticizing herself too in a brief monologue, proclaiming: “How miserable I feel! I am beyond upset. I feel overwhelmed and disturbed” (347). In the context of the play, Silvia's transformations, which occur after chance suddenly inspires her to fall in love with an unexpected character, imply that the forces of chance and love are capable of bringing about significant psychological changes. Verification of these changes by the character described and by all the characters assumed to be most familiar to him strengthens the argument that the forces are indeed quite powerful. This also implies that the causal forces of love and chance are considered so powerful because they constitute the laws of nature. For example, Silvia's future relationship with Dorante is hinted at at the opening of the play, before the couple even meet. Lisette states that Silvia's rejection or disdain of arranged marriage "is not natural" (317). Although the couple has not yet met, in a sense this statement foreshadows how natural and easy it will be for Silvia to eventually accept the changes brought about by love. In the same way, fortune is involved as a natural law. When Lisette and Harlequin, both lower-class servants, fall in love while disguised as upper-class individuals, Lisette comments on Harlequin by stating that "So much humility is not natural" (358). Since humility is a trait associated with members of the lower classes of society and Harlequin at the time is considered an upper class person, it is clear that social roles are considered natural elements of each class. Because wealth defines social class, this implies that chance is a natural force acting on individuals. In the play, love and chance are presented as being more powerful than reasonhuman. Characters continually attempt to use reason to manage their personal lives, but it seems that when one is under the influence of the deterministic forces of love and chance, reason is overpowered. Silvia, for example, often reflects on herself in a way that indicates that she is engaged in an internal battle between the love to which fortune has brought her and her reasoning skills. In any case, Silvia seems to act against the grain of reason. For example, in a particular conversation with Dorante, Silvia exclaims: "Whether you leave, whether you stay, whether you come back, all these movements should not affect me - and neither should they... They are my resolutions! My reason does not allow me any others and I should not even allow myself to speak to you about them” (341). However, despite her determination, Silvia finds herself charmed by Dorante and finds herself, admittedly, “rushing into frenzy” whenever she is with him (340). Later, after Dorante reveals his identity and Silvia is still disguised as a maid, Silvia recognizes that similar forces are present within Dorante, stating: "He thinks that if he marries me, he will betray his birth and wealth... These are not similar forces. slight obstacles... I can almost sense the conflict in him. I want a fight between Love and Reason” (356). Mario responds by accurately predicting the winner of this battle, exclaiming: "And to death Reason, I suppose!" » (356). When Dorante asks the disguised Silvia for his love despite their apparent differences in social class and the rules of convention, it becomes clear that love does indeed go beyond what reason can dictate to an individual. In fact, it is often the case that abandoning reason and embracing the love that fortune has brought usually produces positive results. For example, when Mario realizes that Silvia and Dorante have decided to meet in disguise, he says to Orgon: "Well, sir, since things have taken this course, I should leave them alone" (323). By the end of the play, it is clear that this decision allows Dorante and Silvia to interact, forming the basis of their relationship. Surrendering one's reason to the forces of love and chance allows one to align oneself with what these forces have decreed. For example, after Silvia and Dorante reveal their true identities, Silvia tells Dorante, “We both used the same masquerade to get to know each other better. That said, there is nothing more to say. You love me and I can never doubt it” (365). It is clear that Silvia finally gave up reasoning about Dorante and recognized that the existence of her love was the only thing to take into consideration. Therefore, it is implied that happiness is often achieved when one abandons one's reason and aligns oneself with what natural forces have brought about. The relationship between Harlequin and Lisette often humorously encourages this approach. When Lisette questions Harlequin about whether he should instead be reasonable about their relationship, Harlequin says, “Reasonable? Oh, alas, I have lost my mind. Your beautiful eyes are the rascals who won” (335). Thus it appears again that reason is overcome by the natural force of love. For Marivaux, this idea may have served as a commentary on the Enlightenment rationalism that was popular at the time the play was first produced. Although love and chance have many similar characteristics, there is an interesting relationship between the two individual forces: they are linked by social structure. Chance decides which social class a particular person belongs to, since people born into a certain class become another member of it. Many characters from.